The Church of the Nativity is the cradle of Christianity and one of the earliest Christian structures. The original Basilica, erected in the 4th century by  St. Helena in 334 and completely destroyed in the Samaritan Revolt of AD 529, was replaced during the reign of Justinian (527-65) on the same site, by a larger Basilica, slightly different in plan and incorporating different parts of the original building. The Basilica was built in the shape of a cross with a trilateral apse.

Enter the Nativity Church through

The Door of Humility

The main access to the Basilica is by the very small Door of Humility. Visitors must enter bending over, as if to a real cave. Originally the church had three entrances, two of which have been walled up. The present small entrance was made during the Ottoman era to prevent mounted horsemen from entering the Basilica.

The interior of the church is impressive chiefly because of its simplicity. It contains four rows of monolithic columns of Corinthian order carved from local stone. The columns were painted during the Middle Ages with frescoes of the Apostles. Originally, all the inner walls of the church were covered with mosaics. The remaining mosaics on the side walls and floor attest to the former splendor of the sanctuary. The mosaic floors were covered up with two feet of imported soil, and a pavement of marble slabs was laid at a higher level by the Greeks in 1842. Since the pre-Crusader times the roof has been of cedar wood with the rafters exposed.

Evidence of the turbulent history of the church can be readily seen in the fabric of the building; for centuries it was one of the most fought-over of the Holy Places. It was only by chance that this building escaped destruction during the Persian invasion of AD 614. It was the only major church in the country to be spared. The Persians were surprised to discover a representation of the Magi from Persia on a facade decorated with a colorful mosaic. So out of reverence and respect for their ancestors, they decided to honor these sages by sparing the church. Later, the building was seized and defended by a succession of Muslim and Crusader armies; this explains the fortress-like appearance of its exterior. In the course of time, the complex was expanded by the addition of several chapels and monasteries. Today the Basilica is overshadowed by the Franciscan convent in the north, the Greek Orthodox convent in the southeast and the Armenian convent in the southwest. Also, recent buildings rendered the famous monument quite invisible for lack of a spot from which it can be easily viewed.

The present ceiling is from the 14th century, and it was restored in 1842. The two side arms end in a semicircular apse similar to that of the center. In front of the central apse, stands the Iconostasis which was erected by the Greeks in the 17th century. The southern apse opens onto the courtyard of the Greek Orthodox convent. The steps of this courtyard lead down into a series of burial grottoes extending under the southern aisles.

The part of the Church of the Nativity with the greatest religious and historical significance remains the Grotto of Nativity, the traditional site of Jesus' birth. In the church, two flights of stairs now lead to the Grotto. An altar was erected over the birthplace, and a fourteen-pointed silver star was embedded in the white marble to mark the birth place of Jesus. It is lit by fifteen silver lamps representing the different Christian communities. Opposite the altar of the Nativity, three steps lead the visitor to the Altar of the Manger, the place where the Baby Jesus was laid after he was born. A third altar has been erected opposite the Manger. It is dedicated to the Wise Men who came from the East to Bethlehem under the guidance of a star. The grotto is decorated with numerous lamps, figures of saints, embroidery, and a variety of sacred ornaments.

The present Franciscan church of St. Catherine of Alexandria is entirely modern. It was built by the Franciscans in 1881 to replace the old chapel of the Augustinian Canons on the north side of the church, which was probably an adoption of the original chapel belonging to St. Paula's convent. Little remained of this chapel when the Crusaders arrived in 1099; therefore, they built a cloister and monastery which was given to the Canons of St. Augustine and which became in 1347 a Franciscan convent. The fame of this church rests on the solemn Roman Catholic midnight mass celebrated there on Christmas Eve and broadcast live by satellite to TV networks all over the world.

In the center of the cloister, stands a pillar crowned by a capital of white stone with the sculptured figure of St. Jerome. St. Jerome came in AD 384 with a group of pilgrims to settle in Bethlehem and founded a western monastic tradition which has endured with interruptions, till this day. Here, in a cave under the Church of the Nativity, St. Jerome produced his great literary works among them is his Latin Translation of the Old Testament now known as the Vulgate.

“Glory to God in the Highest Heaven and on Earth Peace for Those He Favors.”

Luke 2,14